Forgotten Twilight
by s-chan.the.insane
Summary: Sequel to Dark Sun Academy. After living in his new home with Rai and Katsu, Ritsuka is bothered by odd dreams and memories that aren't familiar to him. But when encountered by the man of his dreams, his life soon begins to fall apart. OC, shonen ai
1. Chapter 1

Finally, here is the sequel to Dark Sun Academy. Now, if you're reading this and don't know the first story, don't read! Find Dark Sun Academy first! But I think you are smart enough to know that.

Disclaimer: I do not own any original Loveless characters. Characters such as Katsu, Rai, and any others that aren't found in the anime and manga belong to me.

**Chapter 1**

A blue, starry ball soared through the air, followed by a small yelp of glee. The sun was high in the sky above the Haiyashi house as the couples' adopted children all played in the backyard. The family lived out in the country part of Japan, covered with nothing but farms. Their neighbors were far down the dirt road. Baby blue birds stood on the ground, pecking the soil for worms. Once again, the ball went up into the air.

The old couple had three children. All of them were thirteen, only separated by a couple of months. One of their sons, Rai, the oldest of the trio, had long, glossy silver hair along with cat ears and was standing in the middle of the yard, watching his ball go up. His silver eyes twinkled in the sun. He was wearing a basic white t-shirt, along with black jeans with a chain going through one of the belt loops. His silver tail lay motionless next to him.

Their only daughter, Katsu, who was younger than Rai by a month, was running around in circles trying to catch the ball. She dove for it, nearly landing in Mrs. Haiyashi's garden. Her black hair was a mess as she stood back up with the ball. She had on a white shirt with purple spirals on the front, along with a pair of blue jeans. She too had cat ears and a tail.

Katsu threw the ball into the air and spiked it. Rai kicked the ball just before it hit the ground, not even moving an inch. Once again, Katsu was seen running around in circles.

It was a funny scene for the Haiyashi's other son and youngest child. Ritsuka.

The boy, born late in the year, was sitting under the canopy by a glass table. Ritsuka laughed as Katsu was hit in the head by the ball, making his black shoulder length hair shake. He was wearing a light blue sweatshirt with orange flames lining the bottom of it. He had blue jeans, just like Katsu's. And right in front of him was an open book with a pen on it.

"That's not fair!" laughed Katsu, as she picked the ball up. "Rai, you're so going to get it!"

"Whatever you say," said Rai. "You've been saying that all day long and nothing's happened."

Katsu kicked the ball at him, aiming for the face. Rai caught it with one hand and threw it right back at her. It hit her in the head again. Ritsuka laughed really hard until he nearly fell off his chair.

"You guys are funny!" he said. "Katsu, you're not really good at catching balls, are you?"

"Shut up, Ritsuka!" shouted Katsu. She threw the ball on to the ground and let it bounce. "Why don't you come out here and play with us? Aren't you done with that entry of your's?"

Ritsuka shook his head. He ignored anything else that Katsu had said to him and went back to his book. He pulled his chair up to the table some more and picked up his pen. Ritsuka was writing his latest diary entry. He couldn't help but notice how his personality changed throughout his entries. At first he was always serious and glum, but now he was always happy and got along well with people. He tapped the end of the pen to try and remember where he had left off. When he finally remembered, he smiled and began writing it down.

* * *

So about that dream last night. It was really weird. I was at school and I was leaving when that guy with the blonde hair stopped me from leaving. He took me to the movies and we had a fun time. But, as usual, at the end of the dream, he told me that he loved me and gave me a kiss. It all felt so real, it couldn't have been a dream. But it was. I wonder if I know this guy? I sure dream about him a lot. That was the fourth time this week. I've been having these dreams for months now, ever since I started living with the Haiyashi's. Maybe it's just my hormones playing tricks on me. Who knows.

Yours truely,

Ritsuka

* * *

The ball suddenly flew over his head and hit the sliding glass door. It bounced right off, rolling all the way over to Ritsuka's chair. The clumsy girl who had thrown the ball walked up to him and picked it up. She threw it back at Rai, who caught it and twirled it in the air. Katsu noticed the entry and chuckled.

"Another dream about that older guy?" she asked.

Ritsuka nodded. "Yeah, but now it's really bugging me. I just wish I knew his name."

Katsu shrugged. She cracked her knuckles and held her hand up in the air and actually caught the ball with that very hand. She squealed and jumped in the air. She threw it back at Rai, and then took Ritsuka by the arm.

"Katsu, what are you doing?" he asked her.

"You're coming to play with us!" yelled Katsu. "Come on!"

They both laughed as Ritsuka was pulled out of his seat and ran towards Rai. They all formed a circle and threw the ball at each other for the rest of the afternoon until Mrs. Haiyashi stuck her head out from the sliding door to tell them that dinner was done. The three left the ball in the yard and ran inside, Ritsuka taking his diary with him, straight into the white kitchen. They all sat around the purple clothed table, Ritsuka sitting next to Mr. Haiyashi. He had on a gray shirt covered by blue overalls, which had some spots of dirt on it. Mr. Haiyashi worked on a nearby farm, taking care of the vegetables. The man may be old, but he was still able to work and was doing a good job at it too. His gray hair was oiled flat. Mr. Haiyashi smiled down at Ritsuka. Ritsuka's tail wagged.

A whole turkey came straight out from the oven and was placed on a platter right in the middle of the table by Mrs. Haiyashi. She had curly gray hair and was wearing a puffy pink dress. She didn't work, so she stayed home to take care of the house and the kids. She brought out the side dishes of mashed potatoes and peas. Mrs. Haiyashi sat herself down, fixing her dress.

"Well, I say we all dig in!" said Mr. Haiyashi.

At that, everyone leaned in and began taking food. Everything was so warm that it made Ritsuka's tail wag like crazy. Ritsuka liked this feeling. This feeling of happiness. He wouldn't give it up for the world. Here he was, having fun with his new family. And though they may annoy each other and fights at times, he loved them. There could be nothing else in the world that he loved as much.

* * *

Later on that night, Ritsuka got out of the bathroom, wrapped in nothing but a blue towel. He walked down the long hallway until he reached his room, where he quickly shut the door before anyone could see him. Once in, he turned his lamp on and walked over to his dresser. He opened the top drawer and pulled out his favorite pajamas. The blue ones with the paw prints on them. He always pulled out a pair of white boxers and let the towel go. Ritsuka's room was covered with books, with an few cds on the floor. Nonetheless, his room was fairly clean and organized. Bookshelves were everywhere and his computer was in the corner of the room.

As Ritsuka got dressed, he took a look at the time. It was about ten. Ritsuka yawned, stretching his arms up in to the air. He quickly blow dried his hair in front of his mirror. Ritsuka's ear twitched every time the hot air touched them. He giggled at himself. And, as usual, his hair came out perfectly straight. He unplugged his blow dryer and stuffed it underneath his bed. Ritsuka pulled at his green covers and jumped right into bed, pulling the chain to his lamp to shut it off.

He lay on his back for just a little while, kicking at his covers. Ritsuka just stared up at the ceiling, thinking about the blonde man.

_Why do I have dreams about him?_, he thought. _Is he just some guy my mind thought up? Maybe I should write a story about him..._

He watched slowly as his vision became blurry and his eyelids became heavy. Ritsuka curled himself up into a cat like position and fell asleep. But it wasn't a very peaceful sleep. Ritsuka's eyes were twitching, his arms clawing at something, his legs kicking madly.

* * *

_The blonde and him were standing in a lab. There was another boy with white hair._

_BANG!_

_A shot was heard. The blonde went down on his knees, along with Ritsuka. Blood was everywhere, it was coming from the blonde's chest. Ritsuka shook him, but he didn't do anything, nothing worked, nothing could help..._

* * *

"Soubi!"

Ritsuka's eyes shot open as he realized that he was surrounded by nothing but his own sweat. His covers were lying on the ground next to his bed. He flipped his shirt off, tossing it on top of his covers. He didn't feel good at all. His head felt funny, and so did his stomach. Like he had been spun around by Katsu too much.

"What did I just say?" Ritsuka asked himself. He wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Soubi?"

He glanced out his window. The sky was full of stars, but he could tell that the sun was coming up. Twilight was surely beautiful. Ritsuka got out of his bed, walking over to the window. He opened it up, sticking his head out into the cool air. He looked all around the area of the front yard that he could see. Feeling a little satisfied, Ritsuka went back over to his bed, leaving the window open. He laid on his side, watching the wind blow his curtains into his room. He knew that his foster parents didn't want the window open at night unless it was hot, but somehow...it just felt right.

* * *

This first chapter felt a little choppy to me. I don't know. Most first chapters to my stories always feel choppy. Tell me what you think about it!


	2. Chapter 2

Now, for those who sometimes wonder why during my stories, that they'll go back to a chapter and be like "Hey, this word is gone!" or "Hey, why's that word there?" or "Did that word just change tenses?" Yes, sometimes even though I reread my chapters in their documents on here, sometimes when I reread them 10 times later, I notice something wrong and I fix it. So there. Just in case anyone was wondering.

So, on a lighter note, I'd have to say that this environment I've put Ritsuka and the others in is different for me. With all the stories I've written, the characters either are in a city or travel, but keep hitting towns. I've basically put the family in the middle of Nowhere. Hope they see Courage! XD (Courage the Cowardly Dog, it's a show people!)

Disclaimer: Just so that I don't get my butt fried, I also don't own Fruits Basket.

**Chapter 2**

_A distant dream, almost unreachable. No matter how hard he tries to change it, he can't remold it, nor his own actions. The blonde stood in front of him, his hand grabbing the boy's arm._

"_Let me go! How do you know me?! Who the hell are you?! A kidnapper?! A pervert?!"_

"…_A weapon."_

"_Huh?"_

_The blonde let the boy go. "Oh my. That's odd. Seimei didn't tell you about me?"_

"_You're Seimei's…you know my brother?"_

"_Yes."_

_The boy grabbed the blonde's jacket._

"_Oh, then…you're Seimei's friend? But you've never come to our house, right? I wouldn't forget. What's your name?"_

"_Soubi."_

"_Did you come to see me, Soubi?"_

"_Yup."_

* * *

In reality, something was on his face. The wind? No, too soft to be the wind. The boy's cat ears flicked. What was this feeling on his face?

_Ritsuka._

Ritsuka's eyes flew right open. He was still in the same position he was in earlier that morning, still coverless and still covered in sweat. He could clearly see the sun outside from his opened window. Ritsuka sat up in bed, clutching at his arms, shivering. He made a grab for his shirt, putting it on, and then wrapped himself in his blanket. It was cold in his room.

"Why is it so cold?" Ritsuka asked himself. He rubbed his head. "It's spring time. It shouldn't be this cold."

He got up, shrouded by his blanket, and walked to his window. He stuck his head outside, but couldn't believe what he felt.

"It's so warm."

Outside, it was nicely warm, and there was barely any wind. The smell of spring time flowers was in the air, most likely coming from the garden in the backyard. It was a peaceful Sunday morning. Ritsuka brought his head back inside. It was cold in there. His bedroom door was closed, so if anyone put the air conditioner on that morning, it wouldn't have come through. And if the cold air did come through the tiny space under his door, it wouldn't have made the room so cold.

"This is just plain weird," said Ritsuka.

He walked up to his door and turned the knob. Once again, Ritsuka was hit with warm air. He walked right into the empty hallway and heard nothing but snoring coming from Katsu's room next door to him. The chandelier that hung above the spiral staircase on the other side of Ritsuka's door was glistening from the light coming from the sunroof above it, hitting its crystals.This troubled him.

The little pitter-patter of feet came from said staircase. And up came the family's dog, Shima, a shiba inu. Her golden honey fur was all shiny. She was like Ritsuka's other mother. The couple had got the dog a day after they adopted Ritsuka and the other two, thinking that having a pet would help the children get used to their new surroundings. Oddly enough, she only really followed Ritsuka around the house. Shima came right up to him and barked at him, giving a good morning greeting.

"Good morning, Shima," said Ritsuka, lowering himself so that he could pat her on the head. "You doing good this morning?"

Shima wagged her tail.

"You probably need to go outside," mumbled Ritsuka.

Tossing his blanket once again on to his bedroom floor, he slowly walked down the stairs, the dog close behind him. Ritsuka made a left and walked into the kitchen, towards the sliding glass door that led to the backyard. He opened it, but Shima just sat there, panting. Ritsuka shrugged, closing the door, heading over to the cupboard, the dog's eyes following him.

"What's there to eat for breakfast?" he asked. He looked over at the clock that was above the stove. "It's only eight. Katsu should be up soon." He looked back inside the cupboard. "Better have the good cereal before she comes down and finishes it up."

He took out the box of Cookie Crisp cereal and placed it on the table. He walked over to the fridge and opened it up, grabbing the milk and put it next to the cereal box. He walked back over to one of the cupboards and got a bowl and a spoon. Ritsuka sat back down, and with all his material, made himself breakfast. He picked up the remote control that was a few inches away from him on the table. Pressing the power button, he started changing the channels to try and find something to watch.

"Oooh, hee we goh!" said Ritsuka, with a mouthful of cereal. "Furuba!"

Comfortably sitting in his chair, eating his cereal, Ritsuka watched as two boys, one with purple hair and one with orange hair, fought each other. The orange head was sent flying into a wooden table. A girl with brown hair started freaking out.

"That's gotta hurt," said Ritsuka.

He felt a paw being placed on one of his legs. It was Shima, begging for food, with her tongue hanging out.

"No, Shima, I can't give you any of this!" chuckled Ritsuka, shaking his head. He nodded his head over to the other side of the kitchen. "You have your dog food over there!"

Shima whimpered, taking her paw away. She lied down flat on her fours. Ritsuka ignored her for a little while as he ate, listening to the clock tick away along with his show. Suddenly, Ritsuka saw Shima's ears became alert and she got up. She looked towards the backyard, growling.

"What is it, a bird?" asked Ritsuka. "A cat?" He got up and opened the glass door. "Go get 'em!"

But Shima stood there, growling. Confused, Ritsuka stepped outside. There wasn't any animal in the yard. He thought he heard something coming from behind the fence. Like walking. But he couldn't tell if someone was there. Their wooden fence surrounding the entire house was seven feet tall. The walking got faster, making Shima start to bark. Ritsuka shook his head, heading back into the house. The dog followed.

As soon as he closed the door, he heard someone enter the kitchen. He turned around. It was Katsu, rubbing one eye, and wearing her red, white polka dotted pajamas.

"What's going on?" she mumbled. "Why's Shima barking?"

"There was someone walking behind the fence," stated Ritsuka, walking up to her.

Katsu shook her head. "But Risuka, there's nothing but fields behind the house. Why would someone go back there?"

Ritsuka shrugged. Katsu headed over to the cupboard to go grab her own bowl and spoon.

"It was probably a stray cow or something," she said. "Ya know, from the nearby farm Pops works at. Their fence could have broken down or something and their animals escaped."

"It was moving too fast to be a cow." replied Ritsuka, crossing his arms.

Shima started barking again. Katsu and Ritsuka watched as the dog ran right up to the front door, barking like mad. They both walked up to the end of the stairs and watched.

"I still say that it's just a cow." said Katsu.

Ritsuka stomped his feet. "But I'm telling you, it's not a cow!"

Katsu huffed. "Fine then. It was a horse."

"It's not a horse!"

"Why are you guys so loud?"

Ritsuka and Katsu turned around to see Rai coming down the stairs, his hair looking all knotty and frizzy. He was wearing just a plain black pair of pajamas. The two at the bottom made room for him.

"Why's she barking?" asked Rai.

"There's a farm animal outside the gate," said Katsu.

"It's not a farm animal!" hissed Ritsuka. He turned to Rai. "It's not an animal, it was moving behind the fence in the backyard! It was too fast to be a farm animal!"

"So what do you think it is?" asked Rai.

"I think it's a person."

"Well then, I say we let the dog find out," said Rai, moving to the front door. "She needs to stop or else our parents are going to wake up in a bad mood."

He turned the knob and opened the door, letting the dog go outside. He followed her, with Ritsuka and Katsu walking out as well. Shima ran up to the gate and started clawing at it, barking even more loudly. With the boy and girl watching, Rai undid the black latch that locked the gate. He pushed the gate open. Shima ran out onto the dirt road. The three children walked into the middle of the road and watched as their dog ran up to its target.

A little further down the road, there was a man with long hair. Ritsuka couldn't make him out very well, but knowing that there was someone there that he didn't know so close to his house made him feel threatened. But what was this other feeling? His head started to feel funny again. Just like the way he felt that morning when he first woke up from his dream. The man turned around and started to run away as Shima chased him down the road.

"Hey, you!" screamed Katsu, cupping her hands around her mouth. "Stop!"

But the man didn't hear her. He just kept running. And Shima kept on chasing him.

"We're going to lose our dog!" shouted Katsu.

At that, she started running down the road. Rai started as well, with Ritsuka at the end. On the other side of the road was nothing but fields full of high grass. All at once, a red car was visible further away from them. Ritsuka saw the man jump into the side of the car. The car drove off, leaving Shima standing in the middle of the road, barking her little head off. Once they reached her, Shima turned around and stopped barking. She ran up to Ritsuka.

"There, there, it's ok," whispered Ritsuka, kneeling down. Now his pants were dirty. "They're gone now."

"Fucking pedo!" shouted Katsu, brushing her hair back. She looked down at Ritsuka. "I guess you were right. It was a person." Her eyes widened. "Ritsuka, are you ok? You look like you're sweating. We didn't run very far, ya know."

Ritsuka wiped his forehead. "Yeah, I'm fine. I've just got a little headache."

"We should probably wake our parents up and let them know what happened." said Rai, with his arms crossed.

They started to head back to their house with the dog once again close by Ritsuka's leg. When they got home, they walked right into the kitchen, leaving dirty footprints in their wake. Mrs. Haiyashi, who was wearing a baby blue nightgown, was making pancakes while Mr. Haiyashi was sitting down by the table all dressed in the usual farmer clothes, sipping coffee. The milk, cereal box, bowls and spoons were still on the table. Katsu coughed to get their attention.

"Good morning, guys," said Mr. Haiyashi.

Mrs. Haiyashi looked over her shoulder. "Good heavens, look at the floor! Covered in dirt!"

"We were on the road," said Ritsuka.

"Why were you on the road?" asked Mr. Haiyashi. He chuckled, wheezing a bit. "Aren't trying to run away, now, are you?"

"Mother, Father, there was a man right outside the house." said Rai.

Mrs. Haiyashi turned the stove off so she could turn around and pay attention to the kids. Mr. Haiyashi put his coffee cup down.

"You see, they were first on the other side of the fence in the back!" said Ritsuka, pointing out into the backyard. "Shima heard them and she started barking! Then Katsu came down!" He spun around and pointed at the front door. "And then Shima started barking at the front door, and Rai came down! We let the dog go out into the front yard and out the gate so we could see what was going on, and there was a man out there!"

"Shima chased him down, but he escaped in a red car," Rai said calmly.

"And you didn't recognize him?" asked Mr. Haiyashi. The three shook their heads. "Odd, not many strangers come by this part."

Ritsuka's ears folded down. It was true. The area was so rural that even though neighbors were far away from each other and town was even further down the road, everyone knew each other. If someone new moved in, everyone would know about it. Ritsuka looked down at his fingers. He knew deep in his gut that that person knew exactly where he was.

"Kohaku, what are we going to do?" asked Mrs. Haiyashi, looking worriedly at her husband.

Mr. Haiyashi waved her off. "I can't do anything, I've got work today, Gina. You know that. That's why I'm up so early and you're making breakfast!"

Mrs. Haiyashi looked down at the ground, scratching her head. Ritsuka smiled. Once again, old age got to her.

"Well, I can't stay home, I've got errands to run in town today," she mumbled. She looked back up at the kids. "I don't want you kids leaving the yard while we're gone. Now please, I want you kids to head into the shower and wash off you're feet. And then go and clean up the mess you made."

Katsu nodded her head vigorously. Rai turned to go and head upstairs. Ritsuka watched him.

"Oh, and Ritsuka."

Ritsuka looked at Mrs. Haiyashi.

"Maybe you should go take some medicine. Do you feel alright?"

Ritsuka smiled. "I'm fine, don't worry."

* * *

Minutes later, Katsu, Rai, and Ritsuka were all standing in the tub in the shiny, white bathroom, water up to their ankles. The bathroom door was closed, with towels hanging on the racks on the side that they could see. They had all changed into white shorts. Rai's arms were folded as usual, just standing there. Katsu was trying to balance on one foot so that she could clean it with the body soap soaked into the pink loofah. She smelled wildly of vanilla, since she had the open bottle of body soap in her hand. Ritsuka was rubbing his feet together, looking down at them.

Bubbles were squirted at his ears. He looked up to see Katsu smiling at him, giggling. She squirted more bubbles from the bottle at him. Ritsuka made a swipe at her, but missed, as she leaned back. She lost her balance and fell right into Rai, holding her in his arms.

"Nice catch!" giggled Katsu.

"Please be more careful," said Rai.

"And don't squirt bubbles at me," said Ritsuka, his tail slightly wagging. "I only like bubbles if they're from a bath."

"Why not from the bottle?" asked Katsu.

Ritsuka shrugged. Rai helped Katsu stand up on her own and coughed into his hand.

"I say that we hold a stake out," he announced. "If that man was a real pervert, he'd come back for kicks later on."

"Oooh, a stake out!" shouted Katsu, clapping her hands together. The bottle dropped to the floor of the bathtub.

Rai put his hands around Katsu's so that she couldn't clap. "Please be quiet. We don't want Mother and Father to hear us. If they find out, they'll surely have us."

"What's your plan then for the stake out?" asked Ritsuka.

Rai picked up the bottle of body soap. "We first get dressed. And once our parents are gone, we fill up our water guns with this stuff. If we see him again, we aim for the face. Hopefully it'll get into his eyes, giving us time to somehow trap him and call for the police. Me and Katsu will stand guard in the backyard. Ritsuka, you'll be in the front with Shima. I want her to be in the front since there's more of a chance of him getting in through the gate. She listens to you better, so you'll be able to give her commands." He put the bottle on the floor outside the tub. "And bring snacks with you. I intend on staying outside until Mother comes home, and you know how long it takes her to even get to town to go shopping."

Ritsuka nodded his head. It was a good plan. Technically it was a stake out, even though they weren't really hiding. If you looked right at the fence, you couldn't really see much through the cracks, so it would be hard for anyone to see them. He stared right at the bottle outside the tub. Even though he would have a water gun full of soap that would hurt if it got into anyone's eyes and Shima, he still didn't feel right about any of this.

"But let's grab a wash cloth and clean up the dirt first."

* * *

Woot woot! Stake out! Everyone, grab your real shot guns and gather round! We're hunting some pedos!!

This should be interesting...


	3. Chapter 3

Roar, don't kill me everyone! I love you all! This chapter was indeed meant to be short. I wanted to see how it would impact people. So tell me what you think.

**Chapter 3**

A stake out. That's something one doesn't do just for fun on a daily basis. No, a stake out must be carefully planned out, be completely stealth like, and must be executed with the most precise decisions that one could possibly make.

And that is why these three kids were out in the open with nothing but water guns filled to explosion with liquid soap.

Sitting squarely on his bottom, Ritsuka was sitting down on the grass, wearing his newest blue jeans and a long sleeved purple shirt with violet music notes all over the front. His head was being held up by his fist, with his elbows on top of his crossed legs. His black water gun was sitting in the little patch of green grass in between his legs. The dog, Shima, was lying down on the ground right next to him, sleeping. She was whining and her paws were moving furiously, as if chasing the little bugs in the grass.

Ritsuka looked at her and sighed. "So much for a guard dog you are."

He had been at this since noon, sitting a few feet away from the front gate. His pants pocket were packed with a few nutrition bars, just like Rai had planned, since it was now two and they hadn't gone in to eat. And just as planned, Rai and Katsu were sitting in the back. At least the two of them could talk with each other. Ritsuka only had a dead asleep dog.

"I never knew a stake out could be so boring," mumbled Ritsuka. There was a gentle breeze blowing at his hair. "Nothing exciting is happening."

Something poked at his ear. Ritsuka yelped, of course not waking up the dog. He drew out his gun and pointed it at the person who had poked him. Bent over, Katsu had a clear view of the end of Ritsuka's water gun. She was wearing a red jacket and black pants. A white skeleton hairpin was in her hair.

"Don't shoot!" screamed Katsu, holding her hands up into the air.

Ritsuka shoot his head, lowering his toy. "What do you want? Don't you have to be back there?"

"Yeah, but I figured you were lonely, so I asked Rai if I could come up here with you," replied Katsu. She sat down next to Ritsuka before he could even object. Then she looked at him with a weird kind of look in her eyes. Like you could see right into her. "Ritsuka, do you think we belong here?"

The boy shrugged. "Well, we were adopted, so we really don't have a choice as to where we're supposed to be."

"No, that's not what I mean!" said Katsu, shaking her head in defiance.

"Then I don't understand what you mean."

Shima began to snore besides him.

"Like, there's more to life than this place!"

"Well, yeah, we were found in Tokyo. I used to live there I guess."

"But you see, that's what I don't get!" said Katsu, rubbing her head. "You had a place. Me and Rai didn't. Why didn't we have a place? What happened to our parents? What happened to _us?_" She made a grab at his hand and clutched it tight. "Don't you ever wonder why we were in that underground place?"

"Not really," said Ritsuka, taking her hand of his. "Whatever happened back there happened. It doesn't matter anymore. What matters now is that we're being taken care of and that's that. The past doesn't really matter."

"You shouldn't say stuff like that," Katsu said quietly. "I think the past makes you what you are."

Ritsuka shrugged. Feeling like she didn't exactly get much of a conversation out of that, Katsu stood back up, brushing the dirt off the back of her pants. She left him, letting him stare into the grass. It was like he was studying it like it held the answer to life. Those little blades of green captured his attention and he could let it go. His eyelids began to feel heavy, but the grass was so interesting, he didn't want to stop looking at it…

* * *

_Once again, the tall blonde was there, sitting down in front of him. He was covered in scratches. He had to been bandaged up. So while he was being fixed, he couldn't help but notice strange carvings into the man's neck._

_What looked like a coil of vines and the word Beloved…_

* * *

Barking. Lots of loud, short barks. It was Shima. Ritsuka's eyes snapped open and he quickly lifted up his head, feeling an instant pain in the back of his neck. The dog was running up and down the front yard alongside the fence. His water gun was still in his hand. The sun was a little bit lower in the sky.

_I must have been asleep for an hour or so,_ he thought.

He listened carefully, but he could hear nothing but Shima's barks. Which was a problem.

"Katsu?" he asked. Looking around, the only living thing he could see was Shima. "Rai?"

Standing back up, he quietly skipped across the yard to the other side of the house. Ritsuka shook his head at what he saw. Katsu and Rai weren't sitting under the porch like they said they were going to be doing.

"Where did they go?" he asked himself.

And then something else happened. There was silence. Shima stopped barking.

"Shima!" cried Ritsuka.

He ran back to his post to find the front gate open. Looking around, no one seemed to be in the yard. So with extreme caution, and his water gun ready in his hand, he walked out of the yard and into the street. And there Shima was, standing right in the middle of the road. And there was someone along with her. A man with a long, black coat with the hood up over his head. His face wasn't visible, for his head was pointed down, but silver strands of hair was poking out from inside the hood. Ritsuka walked behind Shima.

"Who are you?!" he yelled at the unknown figure. "Where are Katsu and Rai?!"

There was no answer. Then the man took a step forward. And then another. He was slowly walking to the cat boy and the dog.

"Don't come any closer!" shouted Ritsuka. He held up the water gun and pointed it at the man. "I'll shoot!"

The man stopped in his tracks. There was a deep chuckle and a shake of his head. He got closer to Ritsuka, his hand reaching out. Ritsuka didn't know what to do. Obviously, the man wasn't threatened by the plastic toy. But he couldn't just stand there, and no matter what he did, his legs didn't want to move. Shima started barking again. That's when an idea came to mind.

"Attack him, Shima!" he cried, his eyes closing. "Don't let him get me!"

Shima barked in response. He heard her run somewhere and she was still barking. Nothing else. Was she even doing anything? He opened his eyes to find that the dog was being useless, just running around the stranger in circles, barking at his legs. But the odd thing was that the man wasn't doing anything. Just standing there. Ritsuka's ears flicked.

"Maybe you're not a very good master after all. You can't even command a dog right."

Ritsuka didn't understand what the man was talking about, but somehow it made him boil deep down inside him.

"You don't even know what I'm talking about, do you?"

Ritsuka shook his head. "I don't care what you're talking about, I want to know where my friends are!"

"Katsu? Rai?" said the man. "It was time for them to remember where they came from."

"What are you talking about?!" shouted Ritsuka, stomping his feet. What was going on? "How do you know their names?!"

"I know everything about those two. I did watch over them at one time."

"I still don't understand!"

"I know you don't, but you will in due time, I'm sure," said the man. "But I think it's time that you went back to sleep."

He snapped his fingers. Suddenly, Ritsuka was grabbed from behind by someone. Shima turned around and started barking again, but did nothing else. Long, slender fingers held on to Ritsuka's shoulders. He screamed and kicked, but wasn't set free. He looked up to see someone if thought never existed. The same blonde from his dreams, with his glasses and those dazzling pair of eyes.

"_Wander yourself off to the land of dreams and dream of something beautiful, my love."_

* * *

Oh no! What has happened?! Katsu and Rai are missing?! And who's this random guy all dressed in black?! And could the blonde be that one special person...?


	4. Chapter 4

You kinda have to start to feel bad for Ritsuka in this chapter. This is when things start to get really screwed up and everything just starts to end up wrong. Send your love to the kitty cat boy!

**Chapter 4**

_A camera. A single, silver camera. He sat there in the park on a wooden table across from the blonde. He was flipping through the pictures on the camera as the blonde stared._

"_You call this making memories?"_

"_That's right. I'll print them out later. Don't throw them away, -----."_

_His name. His name escaped him. What was his name?_

* * *

Something cold trickled down his face. Another even colder substance was on top of his forehead. Murmurs were heard all around him, along with the sound of a woman crying. Ritsuke opened his eyes to find himself in his room, lying in his bed, with a bag of ice on his head. Mrs. Haiyashi was sitting on a chair right next to him, crying. There were others in the room, but he couldn't make them out.

"Mother?" mumbled Ritsuka.

Words can't express the speed at which that old woman wrapped her arms around her adopted son nor the feeling of dread that slipped into little Ritsuka's body as Mrs. Haiyashi cried into his pillow. She kissed him repeatedly on the face.

"Mother, stop it!" yelled Ritsuka, but he had no strength to push her away. His head was killing him.

"I was so afraid we lost you too!" wailed Mrs. Haiyashi. "I told you not to leave the house!"

Ritsuka reacted to those words. Lost him too? That would mean that someone else was lost as well. The men in the back of the room became clear as he looked around to try and make sense of everything. One was Mr. Haiyashi, looking quite grim. The other two men were policemen dressed up in their black uniforms.

_The police? he thought. Why are the police here?_

They conversed with Mr. Haiyashi for just another moment until they walked over to the bed. Mrs. Haiyashi moved aside as one policeman knelt down in front of the bed, holding a clipboard with forms attached to it. He pulled out a pen from his chest pocket and clicked it.

"What's your name, kid?" he asked.

"I already told you, it's _Ritsuka!_" yelled Mrs. Haiyashi, beginning to cry once more.

"Please, ma'am, let him answer." said the other policeman.

"My name is Ritsuka," said the boy to the policeman who had asked him. "Ritsuka Aoyagi."

"Good," said the policeman. He wrote something down on his clipboard. "And how old are you, Ritsuka?"

"Thirteen."

"Good, good," said the policeman. Again, he wrote something down. "Now Ritsuka, can you tell me what happened today?"

Ritsuka opened his mouth to answer, but nothing came out. His thoughts were all scrambled up. Everything was slowly starting to come back to mind, but it all seemed so weird. Then it all came back to him, like someone hit him in the face with a baseball bat.

"There was someone at the house."

The policeman nodded. "Okay, keep going."

"Me, Katsu, and Rai were going to hold a stake out in case anyone came back to the house while our parents were gone," Ritsuked said slowly. He wanted to try and get everything straight in his words even though they were confusing in his mind. "I fell asleep in the front yard and when I woke up, Katsu and Rai were gone. And two men were there, standing in the road." He shook his head. "I fell asleep again. That's all I can remember."

"That seems to check out," said the policeman that was standing. "You're Mother did find you asleep in front of the house."

"Please, officer, please tell us you can help us find our Katsu and Rai!" said Mr. Haiyashi, walking up to the small group.

"We promise you that we will do everything in our power to find your son and daughter," said the policeman with the clipboard as he stood up. "Though we've already gone up and down the road and asked everyone if they've seen the kids, but no one's seen anyone."

The other policeman sighed. "Ritsuka, did you recognize the two men?"

Once again, he didn't know how to answer that. He stared down at his blanket, cupping his head with his hand.

Mr. Haiyashi pound his foot into the floor. "Ritsuka, answer him now!"

But there was something wrong. Something was wrong with his head. Ritsuka closed his eyes hard to try and get everything to come back to him. It wasn't working. Now he couldn't even remember what the two looked like.

"Ritsuka, say something!" yelled Mr. Haiyashi.

"I'm not so sure!" shouted Ritsuka. His head throbbed even harder. "I don't remember!"

"Please officer, can't we continue the questioning tomorrow when we're all better?" asked Mrs. Haiyashi. She wiped her eyes of tears. "My husband is obviously distressed and I can't stop crying. Ritsuka doesn't look so good either."

Like a queue to a play, Ritsuka's eyes began to feel heavy. He couldn't control what was about to happen to him.

_No, not again, not now…_

* * *

_Again, he was in the park with the blonde. He still had his camera._

_The blonde smiled. "Since we're enjoying ourselves, let's talk for a while. Wouldn't that create more memories?"_

_Pain. Something painful._

"_No! Without pictures, I'll forget! Not just who I am, but my very existence!"_

* * *

Ritsuka rolled around in his sleep, but then slowly woke up to the darkness of his bedroom. The door to the room was closed. He looked down at himself and noticed that he was wearing his pajamas. He smiled. Mrs. Haiyashi must have put them on for him. He sat up in bed and looked at his clock. It was nearly ten. To think that he had slept through the majority of the day. It just wasn't like him at all.

"What is wrong with me?" he asked himself, rubbing his eyes. "Why am I having weird dreams? Why can't I remember anything?" He noted his last few words and spun around to punch his pillow. "I can't even remember things that could save my friends!"

Like a child having a tantrum, he threw his pillow on to the floor in frustration with himself. He tugged at his hair thinking that that would help, but it only made things worse. His headache was still there and the pain made it even stronger.

"I'm going to get some pills." said Ritsuka.

He got out of bed and stumbled over something on the floor. It was his clothes. He kicked them to the side. Opening the door to his bedroom slowly, a slimmer of light fled into the room, along with loud noises. Yelling. Ritsuka walked slowly into the lit hallway as he listened to his foster parents fight downstairs. He hung on the railing to the staircase, his cat ears flicking about.

"The boy is lying! He knows exactly what happened to Katsu and Rai!"

"Yes, of course he knows, and he told the police what he knew today, Kohaku!"

"Gina, he wasn't telling all of it!"

"What do you think he's trying to do? Lie? To the police? To us? He answered all of their questions!"

"But he never told them if he knew the people who took Katsu and Rai!"

"What are you saying? Are you saying that our boy is lying?"

"Don't you dare call him our boy, Gina, he's a liar! He knew those people, I saw the look in his eye!"

"Oh, don't start that up! You can't base if he's telling the truth or not because of how he looked! He looked horrible today, he's sick! He fell asleep as soon as the police got through with what they had to ask him!"

"You believe what you want, Gina, but I'm calling up that god damn orphanage to see exactly what kind of a kid Ritsuka is! I'm calling up his psychiatrist too, I'm sure he said something to her! I bet he hated Katsu and Rai!"

"Don't you dare say something like that, he loved them!"

There was a slap and a scream. Ritsuka couldn't believe what he had just heard. He heard movement downstairs and he quickly ran into the bathroom, closing the door. The lights were flicked on. He opened up the medicine cabinet, got the painkillers and popped two into his mouth. He closed the cabinet and looked at himself in the mirror. His face was a bit red in the cheeks. Ritsuka brushed back his hair, but it all fell right into his face again. Just in pure habit, and to calm him down, he opened up a drawer and began to fix his hair with his red brush.

"Father didn't just hit Mother," Ritsuka muttered to himself as he brushed the back of his head. "They weren't just fighting. They weren't just fighting over me. I'm not a bad person. I did nothing wrong."

But when he got to brushing his bangs, he knew the truth. He knew the real truth. He looked himself straight in his reflection's eye as he brushed away his bangs, as his racing mind accepted the fact that his father did hit his mother, that they were fighting, and that it was over him. He threw his brush into the sink. Placing his palms on the counter, he leaned forward closer to the mirror.

"Am I a bad person?" he asked himself. "Did I cause this? Did I do something wrong?"

A voice in the back of his head told him that nothing was his fault, but something else said otherwise. Something else deep down told him that everything was his fault. Something else told him that it was his fault for living. He leaned in even closer until his nose touched the mirror.

"Is this my curse?" he asked. A wave of a familiar emotion over filled him and sent him back into the wall, crying, sobbing. "I'm sorry, Mother, I won't ever do it again! Please don't hit me! _Mother!_"

Ritsuka sank down on to the floor, still sobbing, covering his eyes with his hands.

"What's wrong with me?" asked Ritsuka once again to the silence. "Why am I acting like this?" He threw his head back. "Somebody, tell me what's going on!"

Something scratched upon the other side of the bathroom door. Ritsuka crawled across the floor and opened it. Shima walked right in and sat down, whimpering. Ritsuka smiled at the dog. But the smile wasn't enough. Shima jumped on him, licking away the tears on his face. Ritsuka laughed a little, petting her back as she continued to lick him. As his hands went through the softness of her fur, his mind went back to the dream he had just had. About the camera.

"Pictures," muttered Ritsuka. "What did I say in my dream? Without pictures, I'll forget?"

Shima jumped off of him and barked. Ritsuka gasped. An idea came into his mind.

He waited until his parents were asleep in their room. When he was sure, he walked downstairs, all the way downstairs, deep into the basement. Down there were the usual boxes full of stuff any family would have; holiday ornaments, family heirlooms, old clothes. But Ritsuka was looking for a specific box. And he found it in the corner of the basement. With Shima right behind him, he opened up the box that was labeled 'Ritsuka's Things'.

"All this was some stuff from my old house with my real Mother," explained Ritsuka, as if Shima really understood what he was saying.

He dug through the few items in there until he found it. He pulled out a dusty silver camera. Flipping it to the other side, he turned it on. Surprisingly, the camera lit up and the area he was looking at appeared in the little screen on the camera. He pressed a button and it led to the camera's memory. The memory card was full of people that he didn't recognize at all. Ritsuka scanned them and tried to remember who the people in there were. There was a girl with pink hair in there smiling, and a boy with long black hair with glasses making a weird face at the camera. There were a few of him in odd poses, but then he found it. A picture of the blonde man. It was just a picture of Ritsuka's face with the blonde's. They looked so happy together. Ritsuka squinted. He flipped through more pictures and the rest of them were of the blonde. The blonde was sipping a cup of tea at a café. The blonde was standing in front of the parking lot of a school. The blonde was sitting down on the floor of what looked like a bedroom.

So he actually knew the blonde well.

"But who are you?" asked Ritsuka. The picture, of course, didn't respond, but he kept on talking to it. "What's your name? What are you to me?"

That's when he made his decision. He turned the camera off, but kept it in his hands.

"I'm going to the place where I came from to figure things out. I'm going to find Katsu and Rai and I'm going to find this blonde."

Shima barked. Ritsuka looked down at her.

"I don't want to go alone," he said. "Would you like to come with me?"

Shima barked again. That was a yes, he was sure of it.

* * *

The raven hair cat boy walked along the lonely, moonlit road with a simple pair of jeans and the blue sweatshirt with the fire design on it. On his back, he carried a backpack full of food, dog treats, a flashlight, his camera, and his notebook. Behind him trailed the high spirited Shima. Ritsuka had a set goal in his mind. To find Katsu and Rai. To find that blonde. And to figure out what was going on with his life. And he was sure that all of those answers lay hidden somewhere within the streets of Tokyo.

* * *

So Ritsuka has now started to remember...some things. Just he can't seem to make everything out right now. Everything's kinda hitting him in the face as you can see and he's on the verge of some sort of mental breakdown. Do you think that he'll ever get better and that he'll figure everything out? Review please!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 finally out! This one might be a bit interesting. I don't know how people are going to look at this one. I'm iffy, but willing to try and see how people will like my change with this one character...

**Chapter 5**

City life is always rambunctious. It's always extremely stressful to those who have lived far away from most people. Such as the case for dear Ritsuka, who was staring up in awe the next day as he entered Tokyo with the ever loyal Shima. There were many shiny skyscrapers that looked like they were touching the clouds. Commercial ads flashed in the air on big screens as monorails passed right by them. Ritsuka and Shima walked in the crowd of people heading towards nowhere.

"Shima, I have no idea where we're going." said Ritsuka. He walked out of the crowd and leaned up against the wall of a building. "I don't know where to go at all. I have nothing to go on but my diary."

Shima barked and whimpered. Ritsuka swung the backpack off of him and un-zippered it. He then pulled out a milk bone. The dog jumped into the air, grabbing the treat with her very teeth. She held it down with one of her paws and chewed at it, while Ritsuka looked down the street.

"I should have planned this out better," he muttered. "I wonder what mother and father are doing right now?" He looked down at his grumbling stomach. "Maybe making some pancakes or something." He looked at Shima. "Do you think they even noticed that we're gone?"

Shima, who was done eating her milk bone, just stared at him, with her tongue hanging out. Ritsuka sighed. His stomach growled even louder. He looked deeper into his backpack for any sign of money, but could find none.

"I guess that's okay," said Ritsuka. "I don't have to eat."

_Wait. What am I saying? I have to eat. But why does it feel so natural to starve myself?_

His hand touched something. Paper. It was a red, crumpled up piece of paper. Curious, Ritsuka pulled it out.

"Perfect! A McDonald's coupon!" Ritsuka began to drool. "I'm in the mood for a Big Mac…"

Ritsuka took out the map he had recently got from the information center. Opening it, he traced his finger from their location to the nearest fast food restaurant.

"There's a place not too far from here," said Ritsuka. "Shima, you might not be able to come in with me. Do you mind if you stay outside?"

Before he could even get an answer from the animal, a chill ran up his spine. Ritsuka spun around. It felt like someone was watching him. And then he saw it. Across the street, from inside the playground full of kids, a tall, strawberry haired girl clutched on to the metal fence, looking straight at him.

"Hey!" screamed Ritsuka.

The girl darted away from the fence. Looking both ways, Ritsuka ran across the street with Shima following. He ran right through the swinging metal gate and looked around the playground. It was full of little kids; like a sea full of cat ears. Ritsuka looked around for the girl. He spotted what seemed to be her all the way in the back of the playground, sitting on the swing set. Shima left his side and went to go play with the small group of toddlers in the sand box. The mothers were there and they seemed to be okay with the appearance of the dog. This gave Ritsuka his chance to go talk to the girl.

He walked up to the swing set. The girl was the only one who was sitting there. She wore a pair of blue denim shorts that were ripped by the knees; it looked like they once were jeans. She was wearing a pink sweatshirt. Her chest looked like it was going to burst out through the zipper. Her hair was tied in pigtails, curling up here and there. It was clear that this girl probably shouldn't be with the little kids. She didn't have her ears.

With his backpack gripped in his hand, he swung it over his shoulder.

"I saw you looking at me." said Ritsuka.

The girl did nothing. She just kicked her feet in the dirt. She didn't look up.

Ritsuka looked to the side. "I don't like it when people don't answer me. It's rude. Even if you don't have an answer, just say something."

She looked up at him with big, teary blue eyes.

"Ritsuka-kun, is that you?" she whispered.

A ping went through Ritsuka's head. He lightly touched his forehead. It started to throb.

"Oh no, are you hurt?!" yelled the girl, clapping her hand to her mouth.

Her shrill voice was just making it worse. Ritsuka shook his head.

"How do you know me?" he asked her.

"What do you mean by that, Ritsuka-kun?" she asked. She smiled and looked back down at the ground. "Maybe you're not even Ritsuka-kun. He would have yelled at me for not using just his name."

Ritsuka flicked his tail. "My name _is Ritsuka_."

"Then you're my Ritsuka!" screamed the girl, shooting up out of her swing. The sudden motion made Ritsuka jump and frizzle his tail. "Ritsuka, it's me, Yuiko! It's Yuiko! I'm Yuiko!"

The pain was starting to get unbearable. He had to sit down. Ritsuka took the seat next to Yuiko as she sat down back on her swing. He placed his backpack on his lap. The girl named Yuiko looked like she was going to burst open in joy.

"Ritsuka, how have you been? Where have you been? Ritsuka, I've missed you so much! Do you still live somewhere in Tokyo? What school do you go to? Do you still read a lot? Oh, Ritsuka, I---"

"_Who are you to me?_" asked Ritsuka. The very question shut the girl up. "That's all I care about right now. Just who are you?"

Yuiko looked like she was about to cry again. "Ritsuka, how could you not remember Yuiko? We were in the same class last year, and then you left and we were all told that you went to an orphanage. Is everything okay with your Mom?"

An idea popped into his head. Not even listening to her question, Ritsuka un-zippered his backpack and took out his camera. Yuiko leaned in as he went through the memory card. When she touched his shoulder with her chin, he moved away and glared at her. Returning to his camera's screen, he found the picture he wanted to show her. It was of the pink haired girl and the boy with the long black hair and the glasses. Now he even noticed that they boy had some white in his hair, around the ears and at the tips. The girl in the picture had cat ears.

"Do you know who's in this picture?" asked Ritsuka, handing the camera over to Yuiko.

Yuiko took it and looked into the screen. She pointed at the picture, smiling.

"Yup! This is me and Yayoi-san!"

Now it was confirmed. This girl was important to him. And so was this Yayoi character. Ritsuka looked at this girl closely. She might be useful, even in the emotional states that she puts herself in.

"So we used to be close friends?" asked Ritsuka.

Yuiko nodded. She handed the camera back to Ritsuka.

Ritsuka looked at the top of Yuiko's head, enough to get her attention. "What happened to your ears? In the picture, you had them."

The smile flew right off her face. She looked back down at her feet. Ritsuka's ears flattened. He must have said something wrong.

"I missed you a lot when you left us," whispered Yuiko. "When you left, I gave up with school. I wanted to drop out, but Shinonome-sensei wouldn't let me. So she assigned a boy from the high school to tutor me so that he could get extra credit in his leadership class." She kicked at the dirt. "It turned out he loved my body more than the extra credit."

Ritsuka couldn't even say anything. How unfortunate it was for that to happen to her. It made him feel like such a bad person.

_She would have kept her ears if I had stayed._

"Hey, Yuiko."

She perked up at him. Ritsuka smiled down at her.

"Yes, Ritsuka?"

"Since we're such good friends, is it alright if me and my dog stay with you for a little while? I need some place to stay and I thought we'd catch up with each other."

All the life rushed back into the girl's body. She jumped to her feet, laughing, and grabbed Ritsuka by the hands. She pulled him to his feet, making the backpack fall into the dirt. Shima noticed this and came running up to the duo, barking and nipping at Yuiko's shorts.

"Of course, Ritsuka!" screamed Yuiko. "Anything for you! Let's go home now!"

Ritsuka could only nervously laugh. The two then ran right out of the playground, complete opposites, with Shima barking in their tracks. With Yuiko's great force, she was able to pull Ritsuka's body down the street as his body slowly became weak. He did his best to stay conscious while something like a movie played in the back of his head.

* * *

_The cat girl with the pink hair was flipping out about something. What is was, he wasn't sure, but she was quite defiant._

"_No! I don't want you to call me that! I want you to call me Yuiko! Call me Yuiko!"_

_That's right. Just like my name's Ritsuka. Just call me Ritsuka. Don't call me…_

_

* * *

_

Woosh! Ritsuka's quite the cunning little mastermind right there! Scored himself a free place while he figures some things out. He's real smart. Maybe him and Seimei actually have something in common.

_Oh God. What did I just say? *washes mouth*  
_


End file.
